Nippon no Arashi - Matsumoto Jun x Islanders in Japan [3/7]
Index: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5
[Part 3 features the Kankou Koshien winning presentation and Jun's interaction with the high school kids. :)]
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High school students that were all surprised by Matsumoto's sudden appearance.
The Hitotsunagi Journey With The Island's High School Students
(T.N.: Based on this article, I realized that "Hitotsunagi" could mean different things. At first I just thought it only meant "bringing people together" (hito tsunagi), but now, by the way they explained it feels like the phrase could also mean "connecting into one" (hitotsu tsunagi). They thought of a really good motto. ^_^)
After they decided to leisurely plan their journey in Nakanoshima, they moved to Oki Douzen High School, where Hana-chan and the high school students were waiting. Just what kind of presentation won in Kankou Koushien? Our chests were swelling with anticipation. Oki Douzen High School, which can be reached easily by car from Kinkoujisan, is very quiet, possibly because it's currently spring break. Matsumoto, wanting to surprise everyone, stealthily headed to the front of the library, where all the pupils were. And then, the second he opened the door, there were loud cheers, which were more like screams, from the high school students who weren't warned at all! Although the pupils somehow regained their composure with Hana-chan saying, "Everyone, settle down~!", they couldn't hide their surprise for a while from the very sudden event.
In response to the aim of this time's journey and to Matsumoto, who wanted to convey that he wanted to see everyone's presentation, the high school students showed us the their presentation in "Kankou Koushien".
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Hanafusa: Well then, to everyone in Oki Douzen High School, yoroshiku onegaishimasu!
Matsumoto: Onegaishimasu!
Everyone: (applause)
Kaibara: Oki Douzen High School's presentation will now begin. Rei! (Bow!) The Oki archipelago, floating in the Shimane open sea of the Sea of Japan, is divided into Douzen and Dougo. Douzen, the place we live in, is divided into 3 towns and villages: Ama Town, Nishinoshima Town and Chibu Village.
Okamoto: Douzen also has famous places and historical landmarks, such as Oki Temple in Ama, Sekiheki in Chibu, Matengai in Nakanoshima, and many more.
Kondo: Moreover, the whole Douzen island has been designated as the national park. You can see a great number of valuable plants and animals here. The island is also blessed with fresh harvest of the sea which you can't eat much in the city.
Kawamoto: Recently, local products such as the Haruka iwagaki (rock oyster), the legend's squid, Oki beef, etc. are being shipped to the whole country.
Okamoto: However! Douzen is experiencing an immense problem. That problem is the drastic decline in the population. Because many of the youth leave the island, the population of around 8,000 from 20 years ago is now around 6,000.
Kawamoto: Furthermore, because of that effect, the number of pupils of Oki Douzen High School, the school we go to, is decreasing rapidly. Currently, one grade is one class. The total number of pupils is no more than 91 students, and the school is approaching a continuance crisis.
Kondo: In order to solve this sort of issue,
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we propose a plan called "Hitsotsunagi! Starting from encounters with the people, the Douzen 3 Island Story is solely yours!" to save our Douzen. Everyone. In this plan, there are 3 major features.
All of them: Number one!
Okamoto: Don't go to the famous tourist spots! Douzen's charm, to say the least, is the people. In this journey, enjoy with the people, relationships with people are waiting for you. By all means, go to the famous places and historical landmarks the next time you have the opportunity!
All of them: Number two!
Kawamoto: The participants of this journey are 10 of the mainland's middle and high-school students. And then there are 10 of Douzen's middle and high-school students. Combining the two together, they overcome their mutual troubles in this journey, and are joined together.
All of them: Number three!
Kaibara: We Douzen High students will do all the project management of the journey. Using our hands, we will convey to the participants of the same generation the charm of the island!
Kondo: Now then, this is the beginning of the 5 day, 4 night journey.
Their presentation, which started in that type of manner, completely changes from here. It unfolds in preparation for a play. The tale of the friend of the high school students brought up in an island and the high school students who live outside the island that had passed conveyed Oki's charm. In support to that, there was Aoyama-san who was talking about "people" during lunch. At the end of the presentation, the tourism plan was characterized by the words "Connecting people, connecting hearts, and also connect our feelings into one. Hitotsunagi*!". It was really very fascinating.
85All of them: Come to Douzen!!
Kawamoto: With this, Oki Douzen High School's presentation ends. Rei! (Bow!)
Everyone: (Big round of applause!)
Matsumoto: Thank you very much! Was this presentation something you guys though of yourselves?
Kaibara: Yes, that's right.
Matsumoto: Saying you're not inviting them to go to the tourist spots is amazing.
Kaibara: That's true, there was that option, but we didn't dare take it.
Matsumoto: How come?
Kaibara: This, the center of the island's charm is humanity, and how people's relationship with each other are thick. In that kind of human relations, we might attain wisdom.
Everyone: (laughs)
Matsumoto: Gain wisdom huh~! That's amazing!
Kaibara: In Douzen, there are a lot of tourist spots as well, but if you take something like that out, like Atodo-san, it will be completely inferior to an overwhelmingly beautiful thing like that. If that's the case, we had to appeal not using tourist places but something else after all. Here in Douzen, the human relations people have is different from the city's........ I, I'm not saying it very well though..........
Matsumoto: That's not true, it's fine.
Hanafusa: Do your best!
Kaibara: We thought of appealing the whole country with Douzen's great people, and put together this kind of plan.
Matsumoto: Hee~! Were there other schools that put together a plan with people's relationship as their theme?
Okamoto: There wasn't.
Hanafusa: Up until now, there wasn't anyone who focused on the people. Up until now, there wasn't anyone who said "don't go to the tourist spots!" and shook the venue. Like, "What the hell are these people saying?".
Matsumoto: Was there a bit of a stir?
Hanafusa: The atmosphere was something like, "Haa? That's impossible, right?"
Matsumoto: That had an impact, huh. Saying "don't go there!" from the very start.
Kaibara: We were born and raised in this island, and this environment of everyone being warmly connected to everyone else has natural to us, so for a long time, we've never known, or rather we never realized that Douzen's charm was the people. However, the pinch-hitter role which was handled by Kondo-kun, was now handled by Hatanaka, who originally came from Osaka. Because that kid said, "The people in this island are very warm. Let's use that as an appeal," and we gradually started thinking, "Ahh, The people are the most fascinating in Douzen
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after all." "Let's use that as an appeal!" We arrived at that kind of conclusion.
Hanafusa: Conclusion (laughs)! (T.N. She was repeating the last word that was said. XD Hana-chan's an amusing person hahaha)
Matsumoto: Say, what kind of person is Hana-chan for everyone?
Kondo: Eh!
Okamoto: Is okay to say it~?
Kondo: Truthfully?
Okamoto: A person that's hard to understand.
Hanafusa: Well, it's okay if it's only something like that.
Ueno: But occasionally, she'll give us a good hint.
Sasa: She properly gets angry when she has to.
Matsomoto: Ooh~.
Ueno: When we're troubled, she'll give us a hint with a good feeling.
Hanafusa: You're such a good kid~.
Ueno: But, isn't it true?
Sasa: She has been quite a lot of help to us.
Ueno: I mean, if she wasn't here we'd all be lost, right?
Sasa: In the end, when it's time to do it, she'll do it.
Hanafusa: Say more, everyone~!
Matsumoto: Kaibara-kun, what do you think?
Kaibara: Ah, me? Uum~, just like what was said earlier, always, as the "Kankou Koushien" leader....... from a higher standpoint, no, from a little bit higher standpoint........
Everyone: (laughs)
Kaibara: From a little bit higher standpoint, sometimes she strictly scolds us, sometimes she fools around together with us, that.......... no, will it be bad to say this?
Matsumoto: I think it's okay.
Kaibara: That not too excessive cooperation from her, and she worries over things together with us. It's like she's something like a comrade.
Hanafusa: Is it not fighting together! We're colleagues! Ah, it's not fighting?
Kaibara: No, you're a comrade who fought together with us to the very end.
Hanafusa: Well~~ I really love you guys~! Everyone is such good kids!
Matsumoto: Tomorrow's finally the real performance, huh. Tomorrow, high school students are coming to the island right? How many are coming?
Kaibara: 10 people.
Matsumoto: Is it your first time meeting everyone?
Kaibara: It's not full of people I'll meet for the first time, there are some people I know. But still, I think it'll be my first time meeting most of them tomorrow.
Matsumoto: How is it? Your mental state.
Kaibara: My mental state? ..................Well, but I don't think there'll be a day where I'll be more tense than I was today. (laughs)
Everyone: (laughs)
Hanafusa: Matsumoto-san. thanks very much! You've made everyone relaxed!
Matsumoto: Eh, you guys were tense? You all did it pretty firmly though. Um, after this, I'm thinking of enjoying Ama's various charms, but do you any idea on where should I go,
87or on who should I meet here?
Pupils: Eh~, I wonder who.
Kondo: There are 2 people, a person called Mukoyama-san, who sells rice, and Hata-san. I'm in charge of cooking this time, and the one who gave me advise in the beginning was Hata-san. For me, there are the 2 people I want you to meet the most.
Matsumoto: Why is that?
Kondo: First of all, Mukoyama-san immediately prepared the rice of the 5-day 4-night stay of the Hitotsunagi journey this time.
Matsumoto: Hee~.
Kondo: About Hata-san, you see this time is our first time to cook.
Matsumoto: Eh, you're going to cook too?
Kondo: That's right.
Hanafusa: They got the local people to collaborate with them, right.
Kondo: Yes. And, because of that, we were taught who will be good to get help from, and what should we be careful in helping out.
Matsumoto: I want to meet those two~
Hanafusa: What don't know will really happen during the Hitotsunagi trip but, the fate's already entrusted to the island people. Well, it's something the high school students will do so there's an amount that excusable.
Matsumoto: That's because they really believe in the island people right?
Hanafusa: There's also that.
Matsumoto: That's amazing! Since you can't do it if you weren't able to connect with them. No, it was really amazing! I really felt how exactly the people were viewing the island we are living in, and how they shouldn't change from how it is now, and what should we do for that purpose, I really saw that. Somehow, I think that my heart's become stronger. I don't think it's a year, but probably around 10 years old different. I thought that I have to do things properly. It was been a really significant time from me to really think about things. I don't know how things will go with the tour that starts tomorrow but, since its something that everyone has made, whatever happens go through with it up until the end, enjoy it, and make it into a good memory. And once again, isn't it amazing that the something you have connected from there will be made from tomorrow to 5 days after that? I'll be cheering for you. Please do your best.
Matsumoto, who received an original T-shirt that we made as a present. He wore that T-shirt and took a commemoration photo with everyone. Lastly, he said, "Do your best!", and left the library.
A commemorative photo with the Hitotsunagi high school students. Matsumoto wore the T-shirt he received.
The letters for the word "Hitsotsunagi"
was written at the back.Scan Credits: ksbyms
Next part features Jun drinking Fukugi tea, and going to Oki temple. :)
*Also, if you haven't figured out yet, the big numbers there are actually the page numbers in Nippon no Arashi. :)
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